December 30, 2012; San Francisco, CA, USA; San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Michael Crabtree (15) scores a touchdown against Arizona Cardinals strong safety Adrian Wilson (24) during the second quarter at Candlestick Park. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
For a quarter on Sunday, it appeared the Arizona Cardinals weren’t going to let this season take them down without one final fight. After out-gaining the San Francisco 49’ers 128-15 in the first quarter and a 3-0 lead, the though was maybe, just maybe, they had something here with quarterback Brian Hoyer. Then, they had to play the final 45 minutes, play being a loosely-used word here.
Although the Cards offense did little in the second quarter, they were still only down 7-6 at halftime. The Niners weren’t lighting up the world for their part. Niners kicker David Akers missed a couple of field goals and he was being booed. It certainly wasn’t a playoff atmosphere. For a minute I thought the game was in Arizona.
The Niners turned it on though in the second half and the game became what we all thought it would be, a Niners rout. If not for a great catch by Cards receiver Michael Floyd in the end zone with two minutes left in the game, the Cards once again would have been left without an offensive touchdown. At least they got the touchdown pass they had missed for quite sometime.
Niners receiver Michael Crabtree has an outstanding day. The Cards secondary allowed him to roam free. Clearly, the Cards had given up. It was a give up to the point of the Seattle game from three weeks ago, however it was obvious the Cards were ready to call it a season before this one was over. It’s a shame. They still had fans believing they could muster up the effort to maybe beat the division leading turned champion Niners in Candlestick Park.
It was not to be. Now the waiting game begins. Who will depart the Cardinals this week? Will it be coach Ken Whisenhunt? Will general manager Rod Graves be released? Will the Cards immediately cut ties with Beanie Wells, who did not play on Sunday? Stay tuned. This could be quite a house cleaning or it could turn out to be nothing. We all think changes are coming but the Cards have been known to surprise us before.